I’ve Seen Devastation

Photo by Conrad Ziebland on Unsplash

I’ve seen devastation
I see it in his eyes
That are swelled and puffed
From the wells long dried.

I’ve seen devastation
Illuminating the gait
Of a shadow of a man
Who ponders his fate.

I’ve seen devastation
On his stained frozen cheek
On a face that has aged
A decade this week.

I’ve seen devastation
And it’s predilection to kill
The soul and the spirit
The hope and the will.


And when she took her first breath to consummate his fatherhood
He could never have understood.

And when her eyes twinkled as any daddy’s girl’s would
He could never have understood.

And when her hips broadened and welcomed womanhood
He could never have understood.